Kendall Gill

Larry Johnson should be happy. After a back injury limited him to 51 games two seasons ago and had many thinking he was washed up, Johnson returned to form last season to average 18.8 points and 7.2 rebounds and once again earn a spot as an Eastern Conference All-Star.So what are Johnson's thoughts on the coming season?''I'm not in the right frame of mind to play basketball,'' Charlotte's power forward said before the Hornets opened training camp.What's upset Johnson is the off-season trade of Hersey Hawkins to the Seattle SuperSonics for Kendall Gill.

How did the Orlando Magic lose a game to an eight-man team and their best player for the rest of the season . . . and still come out winners Wednesday? More important, how can this not be an April Fools' joke? In being routed 109-91 by the Chicago Bulls -- and shouted down afterward by Coach Johnny Davis -- the Magic continued to defy logic, law of averages and countless basketball fundamentals. Earlier Wednesday, the club determined Tracy McGrady would miss the remainder of a forgettable season with a sore left knee.

The Orlando Magic had hoped to pick up where they left off following their strong finish heading into the All-Star break. Instead, they must pick up the pieces after losing to the New Jersey Nets, 104-98, on Tuesday night.Forward Kendall Gill scored a game-high 28 points off the bench while guards Kerry Kittles and Khalid Reeves combined for another 44 points as the Nets (14-33) snapped the Magic's five-game winning streak.Orlando coach Brian Hill had preached the importance of winning the games leading up to and immediately following the All-Star break.

MIAMI -- Heat Coach Pat Riley was sold on his team's power game even before Wednesday night's 97-92 season-opening victory against the Toronto Raptors. He called center Alonzo Mourning and power forward Brian Grant perhaps the best power tandem in the Eastern Conference. Riley, though, was not as sure about his perimeter rotation -- at least until 23.3 seconds remained. For most of this Halloween performance, it was easy to see why on both counts. With Mourning and Grant fueling the offense, with 25 and 20 points, respectively, and with guard Eddie Jones finally coming on late, the Heat were able to withstand an opponent playing on the road for a second consecutive night.

KENDALL GILL, a guard with the New Jersey Nets, is expected to be out for at least one month after he has surgery today to repair a his fractured left hand. . . . Charles Oakley, a forward with the New York Knicks, is expected to be out for six weeks after undergoing surgery Thursday on his broken right thumb.

Who's Hot 6ers center Theo Ratliff has 29 blocks over his last 5 games, including back-to-back 8-block games. Who's Not The Nets' Kendall Gill (33.4 field-goal pct.) has made more shots than he has missed in 3 of 28 games.

I've got to get [teammate] Kendall Gill to have that operation. Then maybe his shooting percentage will improve. - New Jersey Nets' Jayson Williams, after he had laser surgery to correct his own visionThey wrote it. . .Open-wheel racing faced an increasing identity crisis even before the CART-IRL split three years ago, and there's no guarantee that any kind of reunion would provide a panacea. - Drew Sharp, Detroit Free Press

Who: Kendall Gill, star guard of the Seattle Supersonics.Where: Nickelodeon Studios, Interstate 4 and Kirkman Road, Orlando.What: Gill will make a special appearance on Nickelodeon's newest TV sitcom, My Brother and Me. The show is scheduled to debut on Nickelodeon in the fall.When: Guests taking a tour of the studios during production today will be able to see Gill and the cast.

Who's Hot 6ers center Theo Ratliff has 29 blocks over his last 5 games, including back-to-back 8-block games. Who's Not The Nets' Kendall Gill (33.4 field-goal pct.) has made more shots than he has missed in 3 of 28 games.

I've got to get [teammate] Kendall Gill to have that operation. Then maybe his shooting percentage will improve. - New Jersey Nets' Jayson Williams, after he had laser surgery to correct his own visionThey wrote it. . .Open-wheel racing faced an increasing identity crisis even before the CART-IRL split three years ago, and there's no guarantee that any kind of reunion would provide a panacea. - Drew Sharp, Detroit Free Press

The Orlando Magic had hoped to pick up where they left off following their strong finish heading into the All-Star break. Instead, they must pick up the pieces after losing to the New Jersey Nets, 104-98, on Tuesday night.Forward Kendall Gill scored a game-high 28 points off the bench while guards Kerry Kittles and Khalid Reeves combined for another 44 points as the Nets (14-33) snapped the Magic's five-game winning streak.Orlando coach Brian Hill had preached the importance of winning the games leading up to and immediately following the All-Star break.

HE REALLY was going to be ''the next Jordan.'' He looked as though he could be at 6 feet 5 and 215 pounds. He had the grace of a ballet dancer and the power of a tight end. Kendall Gill would take the ball at the top of the key, blow by his defender and then dunk the ball on 7-footers.It all seemed so easy. But none of it was, not the expectations nor demands nor trades nor whispers. ''People always labeled me as wanting to be 'the Man,' '' said Gill, who has been labeled as selfish and a troublemaker throughout his NBA career.

The Orlando Magic finally may have gotten a glimpse of their new backup center Monday night, and his name isn't Danny Schayes.Instead, it was David Vaughn who helped rally the Magic to a 104-103 overtime victory against the New Jersey Nets in the exhibition home finale at Orlando Arena.Vaughn scored only scored four points - on a pair of thunderous dunks over Nets center Shawn Bradley, who stands 7 feet 6. More importantly he had a game-high 13 rebounds, including one that he tapped to Darrell Armstrong for a 3-pointer that sent the game into overtime.

THE NEW Jersey Nets and their top draft pick, Kenny Anderson, agreed to terms on a contract, ESPN reported Wednesday. ESPN said Anderson, the second selection in last June's draft, is expected to get $14 million for five years. The team is arranging a special loan to keep the deal under the league's salary cap.New Jersey offered Anderson, who left Georgia Tech after two seasons, a 5-year contract worth $2.25 million per season. Richard Howell, Anderson's attorney, asked for $3 million a year - the amount New Jersey gave NBA Rookie of the Year Derrick Coleman last year when he was the No. 1 pick.